In this issue:

Nordiko Wins US EPA

Ozone Award

1

Port of Hamburg makes

Recapture Mandatory

1

Genera NZ takes

delivery of Eight

Nordiko Consoles

2

Did You Know? 2

Profile: Craig Vecellio 2

Article: The Importance

of Maintenance

3

Article: The Giant Snail 3

Nordiko Products 3

Health Effects of MB 4

UK Chemical Scare 4

Malaysian Launch 4

Nordiko Quarantine Systems Pty Ltd

June/July/August 2008 (Winter edition) Volume 3, Issue 1

Nordiko News

Nordiko Quarantine

Systems Pty Ltd

ACN 093 913 225

Level 2

403 Pacific Highway

Artarmon NSW 2064

Australia

Tel: +61 2 9906 5552

Fax: +61 2 9906 1874

E-mail: info@nordiko.com.au

Website: www.nordiko.com.au

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this Newsletter, please contact

the Editor, Tehrese Johansson,

via email:

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Nordiko Wins US EPA Ozone Protection Award

In May this year, Nordiko Quarantine Systems won the prestigious US EPA

Climate and Stratospheric Ozone Award for 2008. This Award was estab-

lished by the US EPA in 1990 to acknowledge “exceptional leadership, per-

sonal dedication, and technical achievements in protecting the earth’s

stratospheric ozone layer”.

Nordiko has been recognised for its efforts in reducing the release of

ozone-depleting gases, using its range of Australian-developed fumigation

and recapture systems, which trap harmful gases that can otherwise erode

the ozone layer. Nordiko is the major supplier of this type of equipment to

Belgium—the first country in the world to mandate its use. The Port of

Nelson in New Zealand has also made this move.

In addition to its environmental benefits, Nordiko equipment has very sig-

nificant occupational health and safety advantages.

By preventing the release of environmentally dangerous and

highly toxic gases to areas where shipping containers are han-

dled, this technology allows a much higher level of workplace

safety, compared to existing practices.

The Award was presented to Nordiko in Washington DC on

the 19th of May 2008, by Drusilla Hufford (Director, USEPA,

Stratospheric Protection Division) and was accepted by

Nordiko’s Technical Director, Ken Brash.

Photo: Ken Brash accepts the US EPA Award in Washington DC

Port of Hamburg Makes MB Recapture Mandatory

The Port of Hamburg has made the decision to make promptly recapture of methyl bromide and other fumigant

gases (from quarantine fumigations) mandatory. In September 2008, opera-

tors have to apply for new permission. The application must include a

recapture unit. This follows the recent (July 2007) decision by the Belgium

Government to make recapture mandatory. Nordiko attended the Port

on June 3rd 2008 to demonstrate its systems to an audience comprising

the fumigation companies, environment, port, health and related industries.

As well as providing for safe recapture of gas, the same systems can also be

used for fast and efficient removal of residual gases from inside imported

shipping containers. The growing trend to regulate the recapture of

methyl bromide and other toxic gases injurious to worker health and the

environment is gaining momentum in many parts of the world.

Photo: Nordiko recapture system in use in Hamburg—one

of the top 10 conta iner ports in the wor ld .

Page 1

Genera NZ Takes Del ivery o f

E ight Nordiko Consoles

The commissioning was attended by

representatives from the Port of

Nelson, Nelson Council, and the

media. Stevedores and

representatives from Genera and

Nordiko were also in attendance.

Photo: Commiss ion ing at

Genera Fumigat ion , Port of

Nelson , New Zea land

Profile: Craig Vecellio

Craig joined the Nordiko team in 2006, after many years’

experience as a Technician, Maintenance Fitter, Team

Leader and Factory Maintenance Engineer.

Craig is responsible for both training and

maintenance of Nordiko equipment at various

customer sites around Australia. As a result,

he is often on the road or in the air travelling

to service the equipment and ensure that

systems are operating in the optimal way.

Craig has just gained his Cert IV in Train the

Trainer. He is also a licensed maintenance

fitter, fumigator and forklift driver, and has

many years’ experience in welding and

pneumatics.

In May this year, Craig became a first-time

father, when baby Kaelan safely arrived at a

local Sydney hospital.

Craig is a keen restorer of old cars. One of

his finished projects is a VG Valiant

convertible, and he is currently working on

an old street rod. Craig enters his car each

and every year at the “NSW All Chrysler

Day Car Show”.

Craig is also a member of the Canine

Council of NSW and the NSW Bull Terrier

Club. Craig shows his dog “Shelbi” at

various dog shows around NSW.

You can read Craig’s article on

“Maintenance” on page 3 of this

Newsletter.

Meet the Team

This ed it ion… our Maintenance Maestro , Craig

Did You Know?

In 2007, the Top 10 Ports

in the World, in terms of

TEU throughput , were :

Country : 2007 TEU’s

1 . S ingapore 27 ,900,000

2 . Shangha i 26 ,152,000

3 . Hong Kong 23 ,998,000

4 . Shenzhen 21 ,099,000

5 . Busan 13 ,260,477

6 . Rotterdam 10,790,604

7 . Duba i 10 ,650,000

8 . Kaohs iung 10 ,256,829

9 . Hamburg 9 ,890 ,000

10 . Los Angeles 8 ,355 ,038

TEU is a s tandard unit for de-

scr ibing a ship ’s cargo carry ing

capac ity . I t s tands for twenty-

foot equiva lent unit . In other

words , a standard forty- foot con-

ta iner equa ls two TEUs.

A significant development in quarantine fumigation practice took

place in Nelson on August 12th, 2008. Nordiko supplied equip-

ment to Genera - the largest fumigation firm in NZ - to recap-

ture methyl bromide fumigant used to dis-infest shipping contain-

ers. This was the first use of this technology in NZ and oc-

curred in advance of the regulatory requirement established by

the Environment Court to be implemented at the end of 2008.

Public concerns over the unfettered use of methyl bromide had

earlier prompted a petition to parliament on this issue. The

position established by the court decision balances the need for

an effective biosecurity agent to facilitate international trade,

whilst addressing environmental and safety issues through the

use of recapture technology, until an effective replacement for

methyl bromide can be found.

Map : courtesy Lone ly P lanet

Page 2

The Importance o f Maintenance

Artic le wr itten by Cra ig Vecel l io

Maintenance is keeping equipment in a good state of repair so as to minimise the need for more

costly major repair work or replacement. The life of any system can be prolonged through a

continual preventive maintenance program.

There are two different types of maintenance:

1. Preventive Maintenance is conducted to keep equipment working and/or extend the life of the

equipment.

2. Corrective Maintenance, sometimes called "repair", is conducted to get equipment working again.

Preventive maintenance is a schedule of planned maintenance actions aimed at the prevention of

breakdowns and failures. The primary goal of preventive maintenance is to prevent the failure of

equipment before it actually occurs. It is designed to preserve and enhance equipment reliability by

replacing worn components before they actually fail. Corrective maintenance is usually more urgent,

and occurs as a result of a system breakdown.

Nordiko conducts Preventative Maintenance every 3 months, and Corrective Maintenance, as

necessary. By way of example, Australian Customs have been utilising Nordiko’s systems for more

than 6 years and, as a result of regular and ongoing Preventive Maintenance, the systems are in “as

new” condition and remain in excellent working order.

The Giant Afr ican Snai l (Achat ina fu l ica)

Artic le wr itten by Ken Brash

The Giant African Snail comes mainly from Kenya and Tanzania, and is looked upon by most

quarantine authorities as one of the most dangerous invasive species in the world. It is not a fussy

eater and will attack a huge range of plants.

The snail comes from East Africa but has populated

many countries, including several Pacific islands,

which is of particular concern to Australia. There

are two main avenues of invasion: one is that they

hitchhike on or in shipping containers; and the other

is that, in some cases, they have been deliberately

introduced as a food source. Using them as food can

be quite dangerous due to the possibility of ingesting

the rat lungworm parasite and contracting

eosinophilic meningitis.

They are usually around 7cm in size, but can reach 20cm, unlike their West African cousins (Achatina

achatina), which are the largest snails in the world, growing up to 30cm.

They lay up to 200 eggs at a time and will have 5 or 6 clutches of eggs per year. These snails can live

5 or 6 years and sometimes longer depending on the availability of food and climatic conditions.

Although from the tropics, they have the ability to acclimatize to much colder climates, which gives

them the ability to become established over a much wider area. In fact, in times of drought, they are

able to secrete a calcerous compound that dries on contact with air, sealing moisture in their shell.

They are able to exist in this state for up to 3 years. It is this ability to seal their shell that makes

them so difficult to kill. In Australia, containers arriving from countries deemed to be high risk for

Giant African Snail are fumigated with Methyl Bromide at a very high dose of 128g/M3 (almost three

times the normal dose for timber pests). Both the USDA and AQIS are extremely vigilant in their

efforts to keep these pests from breaching their borders, as they would have a devastating effect on

the agricultural industries of both countries.

Not only do they have a face only a mother would love, but they are also highly dangerous to human

health, agriculture and the ecology.

Some of Nordiko’s

Product Range

L ightweight Fumigat ion

Console - Be lg ium

Max i F low Vent i lat ion

Console (without f i l ter )

- Sydney

Under-Tarp Fumigat ion/

Recapture System - Ind ia

Vent i la t ion Console

(with f i l ter ) - Sydney

Page 3

UNEP Report

Shows

Level 2

403 Pacific Highway

Tel: +61 2 9906 5552

Fax: +61 2 9906 1874

E-mail: info@nordiko.com.au

Website: www.nordiko.com.au

Nordiko Quarantine Systems

Pty Ltd

ACN 093 913 225

Health Ef fects o f Methyl Bromide

Methyl Bromide is an extremely toxic gas. Methyl bromide dissipates to the atmosphere,

but is dangerous as a residual gas often found inside shipping containers. Human exposure

to high concentrations of methyl bromide can result in central nervous system and

respiratory system failure, as well as specific and severe deleterious actions on the lungs,

eyes and skin. Common initial problems include weakness, despondency, headache, visual

disturbances, nausea, and vomiting.

Later, central nervous symptoms can emerge,

including numbness, defective muscular

coordination, tremor and muscle spasms, and

lack of balance, extreme agitation, coma and

convulsions. Exposure of pregnant women

may result in fetal defects.

Fumigation related exposures have resulted in

significant incidences of throat and eye

irritation, skin injuries, shortness of breath,

pain in chest, nausea, fatigue, dizziness,

numbness, and weakness of extremities.

Exposure to high concentrations has

resulted in a number of human deaths.

Source : Fact Sheet : Methy l Bromide . Hazard Eva luat ion and In format ion

Serv ice , Department of Hea lth Serv ices , R ichmond, USA

UK Inc ident: Chemical Scare Art ic le courtesy Shropshire Star Newspaper UK,

as reported on 7 August 2008

Three workers from a Telford toy factory were taken to hospital after being overcome by

fumes when they opened a shipping container.

Firefighters were called out to Golden Bear Products in Hortonwood to deal with the

chemical incident, believed to involve potentially dangerous methyl bromide.

Two firefighters wore airtight suits and breathing apparatus as they sealed the container.

Their colleagues decontaminated them at the scene, which was made safe by 2pm.

Andy Joseph, sub-officer at Wellington Fire Station said: “We believe the chemical was

being used to fumigate the containers.”

Laura Taylor, Telford & Wrekin Council spokeswoman, said: “The environmental health

department was notified that three Golden Bear employees had been exposed to methyl

bromide after opening a 20ft shipping container delivered to the company.

“The employees were overcome by fumes and were

taken to hospital where they were decontaminated

and treated. The council will now work with the

company to investigate how this incident occurred

and to arrange for decontamination or disposal as

necessary.”

Kellee Foulkes, marketing manager for Golden Bear

said an investigation was underway.

Photo: courtesy Shropsh ire Star Newspaper

Malays ian Launch

On Monday, May 26th 2008, Nordiko signed an

agency agreement with Life Sciences at a public

launching ceremony in Putrijaya (near Kuala

Lumpur) in Malaysia. This launch was combined

with a practical demonstration of Nordiko sys-

tems in operation.

Over 180 attendees included representatives

from the Departments of Environment, Agricul-

ture and Health, as well as a large contingent

from the Malaysian fumigation industry, were

present at the launch.

International visitors from Belgium (where re-

capture is mandatory), India, USA and Australia,

as well as other countries presented the latest

practical and technological developments in

fumigation equipment and training. The impor-

tance of safe and effective fumigations under

quarantine programs such as AFAS was re-

enforced.

Image courtesy : Br igham and Women’s

Hosp ita l , Harvard Medica l School

Page 4